


Neat Little Trick

by bespelled



Category: Carry On - Rainbow Rowell, Fangirl - Rainbow Rowell
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-29
Updated: 2015-11-29
Packaged: 2018-05-03 23:33:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5311304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bespelled/pseuds/bespelled
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Penelope knows she’s an expert in all things Simon Snow, but sometimes she has to give it to Baz. One-shot.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Neat Little Trick

Penelope Bunce liked to think she was an expert in all things Simon Snow. 

Well, she’d been his friend - his  **best friend**  - for many odd years, so she felt she was free to make such a claim. 

She thought she had everything down pat - his likes, his dislikes, the things that drove him, the things that frightened him. Every little dirty dark secret ( not that he had many - damn, but that boy was  _pure_  ) and more important than even that -

\- Penelope Bunce knew how to handle Simon Snow. 

For instance, if he was depressed, most people might think he’d enjoy a sour cherry scone as a pick-me-up. Penelope knew however he’d much prefer a hot chocolate, with three fluffy marshmallows toasted at the edges. She knew the exact specifications of the drink, for she’d be the one to whip it up for him every so often. 

She reserved his favorite sour cherry scores for the times when he was happy. Or when he was nostalgic. Or ravenous ( then again mostly anything would do for him if it were the last. ) 

Penelope knew Simon was shy talking to most girls, with the exception of her and Agatha, and even his speaking to Agatha was a revelation. She knew Simon tried his hardest on all his exams, and she would pretend not to notice when he tried to hide his disappointment whenever he’d get a low score. She knew Simon liked to wear knitted Christmas sweaters and matching pairs of socks ( then again it could be also the fact that those were the gifts her mother often sent from back home and Simon never had the heart to say no. )

She knew almost everything about Simon Snow, but as she stared across the table from him as he listlessly stirred his soup - Penelope had to admit she had no idea how deal with this version of Simon Snow. And it unsettled the hell out of her. 

"-Simon?” She ventured, tapping her own spoon at the edge of her bowl, as if he were a dog and such a sound could catch his attention ( she was  _ **desperate**_ , alright? ) “How was your day, Simon?” 

Simon shrugged and made a noncommittal sound, which both simultaneously made her want to hit him over the head and wrap her arms around him.  

“Have you heard from Baz? Didn’t he say he was coming back today?” There - usually talk of his vampire boyfriend got Simon in a better mood. But he just made a halfway grunting sound that made her want to bang her head against the table.

Then, the sound of a key turning in a lock echoed throughout their apartment, and since only one other person had access, she knew immediately who it was. 

Penelope Bunce wasn’t at all embarrassed that her expression showed utmost relief when Tyrannus Basilton Grimm-Pitch strode through the doorway. 

“Hey Baz!” She called out. “Simon and I are just eating dinner.” She wondered if her voice sounded as odd to him as it did to her.  

“Hey Bunce.” Judging from the raised brow Baz sent her way, it was. His gaze then settled on his boyfriend, and if possible his brow rose even higher. “ _Snow_.” 

Penelope didn’t understand how he could make Simon’s surname sound like an endearment. 

“Hey.” Simon lifted his spoon in greeting, smile wan, and Penelope wasn’t completely sure but that was probably the sign that tipped Baz off. 

Shrugging off his dark coat and setting it on the back of the one other spare chair, Baz made a show of stretching his shoulders and cracking the base of his neck ( he was so ridiculously tall, both Simon and Penelope had to strain to look up at him. ) His gaze cut then swiftly to hers, before he leaned forward and captured his boyfriend’s lips in a searing kiss.

Penelope had the presence of mind to look away. 

“Baz, not in front of Penelope!” Simon drew away, his protest loud but at odds with the furious blush that spread on his cheeks. “Seriously.” He muttered when Baz shrugged elegantly and sat down, crossing his long legs at the ankle. 

“Happy, Bunce?” Baz said dryly, and Simon’s gaze darted confusedly between the pair of them. 

“That was a  neat little trick, Pitch. A neat little trick.” Penelope snorted at the expression on Simon’s face, then let out a full-blown laugh.  


End file.
